NH has gained back half the jobs lost in recession

Thursday

Nov 29, 2012 at 3:15 AM

By John Nolanjnolan@fosters.com

ROCHESTER — The October unadjusted unemployment rate for New Hampshire was 5.2 percent, according to the Nov. 21 release of statistics by NH Employment Security. This is the same rate as in September and higher than the 4.9 percent rate a year ago.

In Ocober 2012, New Hampshire had a labor force of 739,820 people of whom 701,270 were holding jobs, according to NHES. This compares to October 2008, just before the impact of the Wall Street debacle, when New Hampshire had a slightly higher labor force — 741,570 people, of whom 713,760 were working. Just a year later, in October 2009, only 687,700 people held jobs. Thus the latest numbers (October 2012) show that the Granite State has recovered a little over half of the roughly 26,000 jobs it lost, although not necessarily in the same sectors.

Elsewhere in New England, Rhode Island, with 9.9 percent, stayed out of double figures for the second straight month, Connecticut posted an October jobless rate of 8.6 percent, Maine stood at 6.7 percent, Massachusetts was at 6.2 percent and Vermont came in with 4.6 percent.

The average unadjusted jobless rate for the United States in October was 7.5 percent compared to 8.5 percent a year ago.

In the table of states, New Hampshire was ranked joint eighth lowest, along with Minnesota and Oklahoma, while North Dakota posted the lowest unemployment rate in the country at 2.4 percent, and Nevada still languished at the bottom of the table with 10.9 percent.

Counties, cities and towns

Belknap County, in October, posted an unadjusted jobless rate of 4.9 percent, Carroll County was at 4.6 percent, Rockingham County was at 5.8 percent and Strafford County stood at 5.0 percent.